in Roman Antiquity, were immodest women, who came from Syria to Rome, where they lived by prostitution, and by playing on the flute: the word is derived from the Syriac abu, which signifies a flute; although others make it come from am and Bais, because these prostitutes often retired to Baiae. According According to Cruquius, these women used likewise to sell paint for ornamenting the face, &c.